Purdue University North Central Writing Center Handout

Impersonal It

I.          IT is called IMPERSONAL IT when it is used in statements about:

             A.            DISTANCE:

                         From the earth, it is sixteen million light years to the closest star.

                         Check the gauge; it is a hundred miles to the next gas station.

            B.            IDENTIFICATION:

                        Mr. Holmes feels it is the butler who stole Lady Smith’s jewels.

                        It is Monday, and I don’t feel like going to school.

            C.            TIME:

                         What time is it?  It is time to take a quiz.

            D.            WEATHER

                        It is a cold, wet, and windy night.

                        It is a warm, sunny, and balmy day.

II.        When we wish to express the duration or length of an event, we use the following             pattern:

                         it + takes + stated time of duration + infinitive + balance of sentence.

             EXAMPLES:

                         By train, it takes four days to get to Los Angles from New York.

                         If you have good weather conditions, it takes two days to climb to the                          top of the mountain.